by Webmaster | Dec 1, 2013 | News
The church property is in the background
Bill Sanders / wsanders@citizen-times.com
We’re getting the word out about our wish to expand Rainbow’s campus with the Capital Campaign. If you haven’t heard, we’re having a HUGE fundraiser on Saturday, December 7th called Rainbow Rising!
Our director, Renee Owen, had an interview with Asheville Citizen Times about Rainbow’s goal to acquire the property next to the school.
Some of the highlights included:
- About half of Rainbow’s Haywood Road frontage will be converted from a parking lot to a park for residents and visitors to use as a resting spot and place to interact with students through student-installed interactive informational displays.
- The expansion will dramatically increase the school’s role as a neighborhood resource, with space for new classes and events to join existing meditation classes, a mother-daughter group, parenting classes and the weekly services of the Church of the Garden.
Indeed, so many exciting things are happening, and the future of Rainbow is bright. The school definitely wants to have a bigger role in the Asheville community and one way to do that is with this expansion.
This opportunity is such an illustration of synchronicity.
Last year at this time, plans were in the works to build on the existing campus and staff and students were already bursting at the seams. Faculty circle is held in various classrooms, other classrooms serve as multipurpose rooms – such as the art room serving as an after-school space and the Spanish classroom doubling as a math classroom.
When Rainbow learned that the adjacent Church of God congregation had plans to move, and the fact that it is next door to the Rainbow campus, the Community knew it had to act. It’s one of those opportunities that was just too good to pass up.
Read more about the Asheville Citizen Times article in Sunday’s paper.
by Webmaster | Nov 29, 2013 | News
Our Third Grade Otters are making a difference!
They held a food drive so that families in the area would have food during the Thanksgiving holiday.
What a food drive it was!
The entire school participated and brought in so much food, here’s what West, our 3rd grade teacher reported:
The pantry at children first went from being almost from almost entirely empty to so full that we had to stop unloading boxes!
Indeed! Rainbow Community School and the 3rd graders delivered enough food to feed over 200 children.
Thank you to the Rainbow Community for helping us with this project. We were moved when we found out that 1 in 2 children in public school in the city of Asheville do not have enough to eat. Rainbow Community School is definitely committed to helping make a difference right here in our Asheville community.
by Renee Owen | Feb 16, 2013 | Director's Blog, News
Rainbow Mountain Children’s School has grown slowly and steadily since 2007, my first year as director. However, I have never seen anything like what we have been experiencing over the last few months. We have about three times the inquiries and tours of any previous year. We have at least six times the number of new applicants than we normally have this time of year. Happily, our strategic plan had already identified a desire to grow by another 40% to 50%, in order to reach an enrollment number that will best serve the children, the community, and provide economic efficiency for Rainbow. (We need to construct another building to accommodate those numbers, but that is another chapter.) Until a new building is a reality, we have limited space. Sheila Mraz, the admissions director, and myself are scrambling to determine where each classroom will be located next year in order to best accommodate everyone who needs a spot, while continuing to enhance the quality and creativity of the program. If you have a sibling of a current student who is going to attend next year, please don’t delay in getting your application in. It would be heart-breaking to turn any members of current families away. As for new families, if you know anyone who is considering Rainbow, but has not yet toured or applied, please encourage them to do so as soon as possible. We anticipate several classes being full as of March 5, although we will try to open up new spots, if possible. Thank you everyone for your faith and support in our special school. Your synergy is making this happen, and it’s very exciting.
by Renee Owen | Sep 9, 2011 | News
(Asheville, NC) – On September 10, 2011, the Moss Garden at Rainbow Mountain Children’s School will be a part of the 2011 West Asheville Garden Stroll. The Moss Garden was co-designed by the Third Grade this spring in collaboration with Annie Martin of Mountain Moss Enterprises and teacher, West Willmore who holds a degree in Natural Resources and Environmental Studies. The moss garden installation and stroll participation were coordinated by lead sponsor Dulcita Love and tripled in size through sponsorships by students, parents, teachers and local businesses.
The moss garden is located within the Outdoor Classroom at Rainbow Mountain Children’s School in West Asheville. Stroll participants will have the opportunity to ask Annie Martin, aka Mossin’ Annie, about the environmental benefits of ‘Going Green with Moss’ and how to begin their own moss garden. “Mosses require no chemicals typically used to maintain grass such as fertilizers, pesticides or herbicides” says owner of Mountain Moss Enterprises, Annie Martin. The Hop West, who hosts many family-friendly events in support of building community, will be scooping local homemade ice cream and is the Exclusive Sponsor for the ‘Go Green with Moss’ program featured at the moss garden on the day of the stroll.
Also in the Outdoor Classroom are vegetable beds replanted this year by the Fourth Grade as part of their Botany, Gardening, and Community Building curriculum for Social Studies and Science with teachers, Eddy Webb and Julie Ludvigsen. There are two large bird nest installations designed by the Third Grade remaining from earlier this spring which were part of an Andy Goldsworthy-inspired Imagine art project coordinated by teacher West Willmore and art teacher, Richmond Smith.
The Honeybee Project will share how bee pollination helps our gardens grow. SJ Bee, Executive Director of The Honeybee Project says “If children can understand the importance of the bees and how bees work together, this understanding can potentially deepen their connection and relationship with their community and the world around them.”
The stroll kick-off begins at the West Asheville Library at 10:30 am on September 10, 2011. Stroll guides will be handed out after the kick-off and will have a map and suggested parking/restroom locations. Stroll guides will also be available at gardens on the stroll. The stroll lasts from 11 am to 4 pm, rain or shine. Garden-themed art and bags, garden-inspired natural soaks for the bath, and bottled water will be available for sale. Restrooms, limited parking, and a drinking fountain will be accessible during the stroll at the school.
Thank you to the Exclusive Sponsor of the “Going Green with Moss” program at the moss garden during the stroll: The Hop West. Thank you to Supporting Sponsors of The Honeybee Project: The Attorney Search Group, Bandidos Restaurant, Greenlife Grocery, Harvest The Sun.
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– Submitted by Dulcita Love
by Renee Owen | Jul 20, 2011 | News
Our preschoolers love the tricycles. They ride them everyday; morning, noon, and after school. They have an oval loop they ride, chalk arrows pointing which way to go. Watching them will make you dizzy. I often have to walk by very quickly before the train of tricycles catches me.
All the riding can wear out, not the preschooler, but the trike. This happened just recently when our tandem tricycle snapped in two. Oh no! We weren’t down just one ride but a two seater.
To the rescue our most pleasant West Asheville neighbor, Organic Mechanic. They took our broken tricycle and cleaned it, welded it and returned her better than new. They are heroes!
Preschoolers, start your engines! Thank you Organic Mechanic!
